Samaritans launches brand refresh and new website

Samaritans has updated its brand and launched a new website to try and reach a wider audience.

The brand refresh, which will take place on 19 March, aims to increase awareness of Samaritans' services among potential beneficiaries and volunteers.

The refresh involves a new logo, with a new font, against its green background.

Paul McDonald, executive director of external affairs, said: “Samaritans is a trusted and respected charity, and to stay relevant to our target audiences we sometimes need to update and refresh our brand.

“We are also taking account of research which shows that although the public has a high level of awareness of Samaritans as a charity, we not always seen as relevant, particularly by young people.

“Whilst we continue to be here for people in moments of crisis, we hope to reach more people earlier who are struggling to cope too. We are working in many different ways to reach more people. That includes campaigning to make suicide prevention a priority with government and working with other relevant organisations.”

The charity also updated its website yesterday, to coincide with the brand refresh. It aims to be more accessible so that users can navigate content easily, as part of techniques employed to raise awareness of Samaritans' services.

This month, Samaritans launched two new digital tools, a dashboard to help volunteers manage service users, and a self-help tool for people struggling with suicidal thoughts. The charity also plans to roll out more digital support tools, such as online messaging and webchat to the site’s visitors.

McDonald added: “The new website will enable us to support more people, and it has been informed by extensive research with our target audience, so that it is simple to use and reflects our updated brand.”

The new branding cost £80,000. It was co-designed and developed by branding agency, Spencer du Bois, while the website was created by digital agency, Torchbox.

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